…How to release a jammed pedal on a Premier Timp

Saturday 31 January 2015

(Every Percussionist Should Know…) …How to release a jammed pedal on Premier timpani.

This post follows on from an article I wrote explaining in detail about what components make up the Premier clutch mechanism and how they work as a unit. This theoretical knowledge will help in resolving most problems a timpanist will encounter with setting up the mechanism.

However this post is involved with directly resolving the problem of the pedal being stuck in the down position. What I don’t mention in the video is that before you launch into the job, just have a look to see if there are missing or loose parts.

Furthermore, there are only two reasons why the pedal will have become stuck. The first is worn, loose or missing parts. If nothing is missing then the internal workings of the clutch might have become worn, in which case it needs to be looked at. The second reason is that it has been set up by someone who doesn’t know what they are doing. There are plenty of self proclaimed “experts” out there!